USPTO 2015–2025 USPTO PatentsView Foreign Corporation

ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh

USPTO PatentsView assignee record - 148 granted patents across 42 technology areas, active 2020–2025. Filing-trend and competitive-moat analysis cross-referenced to USPTO Patent Public Search. Primary class: B60R (VEHICLES, VEHICLE FITTINGS, OR VEHICLE PARTS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR).

Compiled byPlainPatent Editorial, US Patent Intelligence Editorial Team · May 15, 2026

Explore the portfolio See the ranking

148

Total patents granted

CPC technology areas

15.5

Avg claims per patent

5-year filing velocity

The verdict

ZF holds 148 US patents across 42 technology areas, rank #2,634 of 50,000 tracked assignees.

#2,634
of 50,000 US assignees by volume: Top 1%
by Innovation Score (69.5/100): 15.5
avg claims per patent

Portfolio overview

ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh has been granted 148 US utility patents between 2020 and 2025, placing ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh at rank #2,634 across all assignees tracked by PlainPatent. This portfolio spans 42 distinct Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) subclasses, averaging 15.5 claims per patent with primary concentration in B60R (VEHICLES, VEHICLE FITTINGS, OR VEHICLE PARTS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR). As a Foreign Corporation, ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh is one of the more focused assignees in the PatentsView dataset. By volume, ZF sits between Maschinenfabrik Reinhausen Gmbh (148 patents, rank #2,630) and Cleversafe, Inc. (147 patents, rank #2,638) - the closest US assignees by grant volume. The composite Innovation Score of 69.5/100 blends portfolio volume, filing velocity, technology breadth, and claim depth into a single comparable measure drawn directly from USPTO PatentsView records.

Filing cadence tells the strategic story. Historical data spans 2020 through 2025, with 148 total grants over that period. Velocity comparisons require five years of historical filings to calibrate. The Foreign Corporation classification further shapes interpretation, since corporate, government, and individual filers pursue patents for materially different reasons.

Claim depth and technology breadth together indicate competitive posture. ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh's 15.5 average claims per patent sits within the typical range for solid legal coverage without excessive prosecution cost, while a multi-domain presence across 42 subclasses balances depth with breadth. Combined with portfolio volume, these signals let analysts, investors, and licensing professionals benchmark ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh against peers pursuing similar technology classes.

Maschinenfabrik R…

148
Mitsubishi Aircra…

148
Ocient Holdings

148
The University Of…

148
ZF Automotive Ger… ◀

148
Aircelle

147
Angiodynamics

147
Blue Yonder Group

147
Cleversafe

147

What this shows ZF holds 148 patents at rank #2,634, shown against the 8 assignees closest to it in grant volume rather than the industry's largest filers.

Companies ranked near ZF

By rank, the assignees closest to #2,634 in granted patent volume.

Leaders in B60R (Vehicles)

Other assignees with the most granted patents in ZF's primary technology class.

ZF's Innovation Score vs. every tracked assignee

Composite of portfolio volume, filing velocity, technology breadth, and claim depth (0–100)

69 Top 1% higher than 99% of 50,000 US assignees

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US assignees. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source USPTO PatentsView, PlainPatent Innovation Score · 2015–2025

USPTO utility patent grants by year · 2020–2025

Grants by year

Teal-shaded recent years (2020–present) versus the 2020–2019 baseline. Full figures in the table below.

View data table

ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh patent grants by year, 2015–2025
Year	Patents Granted	Share of Period
2020	5	3.4%
2021	7	4.7%
2022	24	16.2%
2023	37	25.0%
2024	41	27.7%
2025	34	23.0%

Which technologies does ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh patent most?

B60R - VEHICLES, VEHICLE FITTINGS, OR VEHICLE PARTS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR 74

B62D - MOTOR VEHICLES; TRAILERS 60

F16H - GEARING 11

F16C - SHAFTS; FLEXIBLE SHAFTS; ELEMENTS OR CRANKSHAFT MECHANISMS; ROTARY BODIES OTHER THAN GEARING ELEMENTS; BEARINGS 9

B60N - SEATS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR VEHICLES; VEHICLE PASSENGER ACCOMMODATION NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR 8

B60W - CONJOINT CONTROL OF VEHICLE SUB-UNITS OF DIFFERENT TYPE OR DIFFERENT FUNCTION; CONTROL SYSTEMS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR HYBRID VEHICLES; ROAD VEHICLE DRIVE CONTROL SYSTEMS FOR PURPOSES NOT RELATED TO THE CONTROL OF A PARTICULAR SUB-UNIT 6

B32B - LAYERED PRODUCTS, i.e. PRODUCTS BUILT-UP OF STRATA OF FLAT OR NON-FLAT, e.g. CELLULAR OR HONEYCOMB, FORM 6

G01L - MEASURING FORCE, STRESS, TORQUE, WORK, MECHANICAL POWER, MECHANICAL EFFICIENCY, OR FLUID PRESSURE 5

F16F - SPRINGS; SHOCK-ABSORBERS; MEANS FOR DAMPING VIBRATION 3

H02K - DYNAMO-ELECTRIC MACHINES 3

G05D - SYSTEMS FOR CONTROLLING OR REGULATING NON-ELECTRIC VARIABLES 2

G01P - MEASURING LINEAR OR ANGULAR SPEED, ACCELERATION, DECELERATION, OR SHOCK; INDICATING PRESENCE, ABSENCE, OR DIRECTION, OF MOVEMENT 2

B60Q - ARRANGEMENT OF SIGNALLING OR LIGHTING DEVICES, THE MOUNTING OR SUPPORTING THEREOF OR CIRCUITS THEREFOR, FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL 2

A44B - BUTTONS, PINS, BUCKLES, SLIDE FASTENERS, OR THE LIKE 2

G01M - TESTING STATIC OR DYNAMIC BALANCE OF MACHINES OR STRUCTURES; TESTING OF STRUCTURES OR APPARATUS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR 2

Top 15 of 42 technology areas

Patent Moat Analysis

Portfolio Volume Moderate

Tech Breadth Multi-domain

Claim Depth Standard

Where it ranks

Overall rank by patents

#2,634

Across all tracked assignees

Innovation Score

69.5 out of 100

View all rankings →

Data Source

USPTO PatentsView, US granted patents 2015–2025

How is Innovation Score calculated?

Frequently Asked Questions

How many patents does ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh hold?

ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh holds 148 US granted patents filed between 2020 and 2025, spanning 42 technology areas.

What is ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh's Innovation Score?

ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh has an Innovation Score of 69.5 out of 100. This composite metric weighs portfolio volume (40%), filing velocity (20%), technology breadth (25%), and claim depth (15%).

What technology areas does ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh focus on?

ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh's top technology area is B60R (VEHICLES, VEHICLE FITTINGS, OR VEHICLE PARTS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR) with 74 patents. The company has filed patents in 42 CPC subclasses total.

Is ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh's patent filing rate increasing or decreasing?

Insufficient historical data is available to calculate a velocity trend for ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh.

What does claim depth mean for ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh's patents?

ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh's patents average 15.5 claims each. This falls within the standard range, providing solid legal coverage.

How is the ZF Automotive Germany Gmbh patent data sourced?

All patent data comes from USPTO PatentsView, a public research dataset maintained by the United States Patent and Trademark Office covering US granted utility patents from 2015 to 2025.

How to use this portfolio

ZF's 148 grants land it in the top 1% by Innovation Score, but volume alone doesn't tell you where the strength sits.

Read that count against the largest US assignees before treating it as dominance - ZF ranks #2,634 of 50,000. Top 50 holders
Most of this portfolio concentrates in B60R - see who else leads that technology area. B60R leaders
Check what the four-part Innovation Score actually rewards before comparing it to another company. How the score works

Patent counts and the Innovation Score measure patenting activity, not commercial success or the legal strength of any patent. Many patents are filed defensively. Verify the status of an individual patent against official USPTO records.

Data sourced from USPTO PatentsView - official U.S. government patent data. See our methodology for computation details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainPatent Editorial

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the USPTO PatentsView database. Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Data sources used on this page

USPTO PatentsView - the disambiguated bulk patent-grant, assignee, and CPC data this page's figures are derived from. patentsview.org
Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) - the joint USPTO/EPO classification scheme used to group patents by technology area. cooperativepatentclassification.org
USPTO Patent Public Search - the official interface to verify the status of any individual patent. ppubs.uspto.gov

Compiled byPlainPatent Editorial, US Patent Intelligence Editorial Team · May 15, 2026

Every figure on PlainPatent is rendered directly from USPTO source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on USPTO source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 2026.